Feeling excluded from traditional incubators, entrepreneurs create their own

It can be hard for a certain type of business to get into an incubator to expand their company. For entrepreneurs who feel as if they don’t fit in there, it can be hard to want to stick around.

Rusul Alrubail, a Toronto college teacher who developed a writing app, said one of her biggest challenges in launching was being taken seriously by the people she encountered in the startup world. The incubators and conferences she attended were typically full of men; often white, mainly young. It wasn’t often she saw another visible Muslim woman such as herself.

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“I didn’t feel welcome and included. I never saw anyone who looked different,” said Ms. Alrubail, whose app is called the Writing Project. “I had to deal with a lot of microaggressions, from being ignored to … realizing [some people were] not willing to help.” Full story

Arts impresario David Mirvish jumps into fintech with investment in small-business lender FundThrough

Arts impresario David Mirvish is making a significant investment in financial technology firm FundThrough, the modern-day equivalent of the small-business lenders that helped him and his entrepreneur father start their own successful companies years ago. Full story

Toronto company criticized for job ad saying ‘men are preferred’ for 25-pound lifting

A Toronto coffee company is facing backlash online after it posted an employment ad stating it preferred men over women because they would be lifting heavy packages. Full story

Introhive poised to be New Brunswick’s next startup star

Seven years after social-media monitoring firm Radian6 put Fredericton on the technology map by selling out to Salesforce.com for US$326-million, the pretty provincial capital has another hometown contender hoping for a repeat success in the enterprise software business. Full story

Controversial changes to small-business tax rules are about to become law, but a new petition shows they remain very unpopular with thousands of business owners. Full story

Where are all the female cleantech entrepreneurs?

It is often said, but bears repeating, that women are significantly underrepresented in the innovation economy, with one recent report finding that only 5 per cent of Canadian technology companies have a solo female founder or chief executive. Full story

Free laneway homes? Vancouver entrepreneur’s offer comes with a catch

If you’re a Vancouver homeowner with a little land and a lot of patience, Duane Laird has an idea you might want to hear. The entrepreneur is offering to build free laneway houses in people’s backyards – as long as they let him retain control of the property for 12 years. Full story

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Dalhousie president Richard Florizone to head Waterloo quantum-tech lab

Dalhousie University president Richard Florizone is leaving the Halifax university to head up Quantum Valley Ideas Lab, a Waterloo, Ont., centre aimed at connecting research discoveries in quantum technology with products and businesses. Full story

Ontario Federation of Labour asks Ford to keep $15 minimum wage

Ontario unions are bracing for maximum pain on minimum wage, as Premier-designate Doug Ford is set to roll back the $15 an hour rate. Full story

Chinatown residents rally against cannabis stores

With the legalization of cannabis likely only months away across Canada, some residents in Calgary’s Chinatown community voiced their displeasure on Saturday over the prospect of cannabis stores opening in their neighbourhood. Full story

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